[Direct answer]After the will is determined to be wholly or partially invalid, the inheritance involved in the invalid part shall be handled in accordance with statutory succession, which is explicitly stipulated in Article 1154(4) of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China. Under statutory succession, spouses, children, and parents are the first-order heirs (Article 1127), and the shares of the same order shall generally be equal; those who have fulfilled the main duty of supporting the decedent or lived with him/her may receive a larger share; and those who have the ability to support but fail to fulfill their obligations shall not receive a share or a smaller share (Article 1130). If the transfer and distribution of the inheritance have been completed according to the invalid will, the interested parties may sue for re-distribution. The statute of limitations for lawsuits to protect civil rights is three years (Article 188). You can first go through the relevant procedures.Legal services for inheritance and family property divisionEvaluate the plan.

I. Problem Background and Typical Scenarios

The main reasons for the invalidation of wills are quite concentrated: self-written wills only have signatures but no dates; printed wills with unqualified witnesses or missing page signatures; being diagnosed with cognitive disorders such as Alzheimer's disease at the time of making the will; the will disposes of the spouse's or others' property shares; the authenticity of the handwriting cannot be confirmed by appraisal; and multiple wills with conflicting contents are deemed partially invalid. Once the will is overturned, the original family distribution pattern "according to the will" will change. Some people may go from owning the property alone to sharing it with others. Transferred ownership and received funds may face redistribution, which is also the reason why disputes over the invalidation of wills are often highly contentious.

II. Key points of dispute

  • Determining the scope of invalidity: Is the entire will invalid, or is only a certain clause invalid? In the case of partial invalidity, the legal part of the will will still be executed, and only the invalid part will revert to statutory inheritance. The scope of invalidity directly affects the shares of all parties involved.
  • The dispute over capacity for action: The party who claims to lack capacity for civil action when making a will needs to submit evidence such as medical records, appraisal opinions, and daily behavioral manifestations; if the appraisal institution withdraws the case or fails to provide a clear opinion, the court will determine the case based on all available evidence.
  • Re-balancing under statutory inheritance: After transferring to statutory inheritance, the contribution to support, cohabitation, and the degree of living difficulties become factors for determining the share, which may differ greatly from the fixed arrangements under the will; those who lack working ability and have no source of livelihood should also retain the necessary share (Article 1141 of the Civil Code).
  • Handling of fait accompli: If the house has been transferred and the deposit has been withdrawn, the party concerned may request a re-division and ask the acquiring party to provide compensation in the form of a discount or return the property. If the acquiring party refuses to comply, the party concerned may apply for forced execution.

III. Professional analysis by Henglue Lawyers

A case handled by Henglue Law Firm illustrates the connection between the "scope of a will" and statutory inheritance. The house owned by Mr. and Mrs. Zhao was a marital joint property. Mr. Zhao made two self-written wills in 2008 and 2017, respectively, leaving his share of the house and the share that might be inherited from his wife to their eldest son. Mrs. Li, Mr. Zhao's wife, died in 2010 without leaving a will, so her half share of the house was not covered by the will. After Mr. Zhao's death in 2020, the youngest son refused to cooperate with the transfer of ownership on the grounds of doubt about the authenticity of the will, and the eldest son entrusted Henglue Law Firm to sue him. The court determined that the two self-written wills were written by the testator himself and dated, with their contents mutually corroborating each other, and were thus valid. The youngest son failed to submit comparison samples or apply for handwriting identification, so his defense was unfounded. Ultimately, the house was inherited by the eldest son according to the will, while the share not covered by the will was distributed among Mr. Zhao and his two children according to statutory inheritance. The eldest son paid the youngest son a compensation of over 520,000 yuan and required him to assist with the transfer of ownership within a specified period. This case demonstrates two points: the share not covered by the will is automatically handled according to statutory inheritance; and the party claiming that the will is invalid bears the burden of proof. Without evidence to refute a formally valid will, mere suspicion is insufficient to overturn it.

IV. Practical suggestions and legal basis

At the legal basis level: Article 1154(4) of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China is the direct basis for the invalid part of the will to be inherited according to the statutory inheritance; Article 1127 determines the order of inheritance; Article 1130 stipulates the principle of equal division and the situation of unequal division; Article 1122 defines the scope of the estate; Articles 1062 and 1063 require that the spouse's share be extracted from the couple's joint property first, and then the estate be distributed. Practical advice: If you believe the will is invalid, collect evidence such as medical records, diagnostic certificates, witness statements of the writing process, and image materials as soon as possible and file a lawsuit to prevent the property from being disposed of in advance. If you believe the will is valid, prepare handwriting comparison samples, notarization materials, and videos to respond to challenges. Regardless of which party, you should initiate proceedings as soon as possible - the lawsuit for re-division is also subject to the three-year statute of limitations; if you are not satisfied with the effective judgment, you can also seek remedies through appeal and retrial, and refer to the enforcement guarantee for reference.Legal services for creditor-debtor relations and enforcement cases.

5. Henglu Law Firm's Reminder

The fact that the will is deemed invalid does not mean that the dispute over the inheritance is settled. There is still room for legal succession to claim rights: children who have long been taking care of their parents should immediately start collecting evidence of their support to gain grounds for a larger share; and the recipient should also face up to the obligation of re-dividing the property and offer compensation at a lower cost than being forced to comply with the court's decision. Here's a reminder: rather than disputing over the inheritance after the fact, it's better to consult a professional to review the form and content of the will when drafting it, thereby reducing the probability of its being deemed invalid at the source; and for those who have already distributed the inheritance according to the will, they should keep the original will, the video of the writing process, and the notarization materials to prove their rights in case of future challenges. The above inheritance dispute case is handled by Beijing Henglue Law Firm.Yuan HangThe lawyer (practice license number: 11101202110286151, subject to the document issued by the judicial administrative organ) acts on behalf of the client. The court ultimately clarified the connection between the validity of the will and the statutory inheritance. If you are currently facing disputes over the invalidity of the will or the need for a redistribution of assets, it is recommended that you consult and seek an assessment as soon as possible.

Q1: After the will is deemed invalid, in what order will the estate be distributed?

The inheritance shall be handled in accordance with the statutory succession. According to Article 1127 of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China, the first order of succession includes the spouse, children, and parents; the second order includes siblings, grandparents, and maternal grandparents. Where there are first-order successors to inherit, the second-order successors shall not inherit. The share of inheritance for successors in the same order shall generally be equal (Article 1130), but there is room for adjustment: Successors who have special difficulties in life and lack the ability to work shall be taken care of; those who have fulfilled the main obligation of supporting or lived with the decedent may receive a larger share; and those who have the ability and conditions to support but fail to fulfill their obligation shall not receive or receive a smaller share. If the successors agree upon it through consultation, the inheritance may also be distributed unequally.

Q2: If a person is already ill when making a will, is the will necessarily invalid?

Not necessarily. According to Article 1143 of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China, only the wills made by persons with no or limited capacity for civil conduct are invalid; if the person is ill but still able to recognize their own actions and express their true intentions, the will they made will still be valid. The key to determining this lies in evidence: the party claiming invalidity should submit hospital diagnosis certificates, records of cognitive ability in medical records, guardianship or hospitalization records, etc. If necessary, they may apply for a civil capacity assessment. If the assessment institution withdraws the case due to technical reasons, the court will make a comprehensive judgment based on medical records, witness testimonies, and the fluency of the will-writing process. Conversely, it is difficult to overturn a formally complete will based on a general claim that "the person was old and ill at the time".

Q3: If the will is invalid but the house has already been transferred to someone else, what should I do?

You can sue to request a re-division of the property. After the will is deemed invalid, the property rights obtained according to the will lose their legal basis. Other heirs may request a re-distribution of the house. The usual approach is for one party to inherit all the property and pay a compensation to the other heirs. All parties shall assist in handling the transfer registration according to the effective judgment. If the house has been sold, you can claim a division of the sale proceeds or a compensation in the form of a discounted price from the seller. If the obligee identified in the effective legal document fails to perform his obligations, you may apply for compulsory enforcement according to the Civil Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China. The court may issue a notice of assistance in enforcement to the real estate registration authority to complete the transfer. Such claims are subject to a three-year statute of limitations, and the risk of the house being resold or mortgaged again will increase with time. It is advisable to act as soon as possible.

Q4: When it comes to statutory inheritance, who can receive a larger share of the inheritance?

According to Article 113 of the Civil Code of the People's Republic of China, there are two circumstances in which an heir may receive a larger share of the inheritance: 1. For heirs who face particular difficulties in life and lack the ability to work, they should be given preferential treatment when distributing the inheritance. 2. For heirs who have fulfilled their primary support obligations to the decedent or lived with the decedent, they may receive a larger share of the inheritance when it is distributed. Conversely, for heirs who have the ability and means to provide support but fail to fulfill their obligations, they should receive no or a smaller share of the inheritance. It is important to emphasize that both the allocation of a larger or smaller share of the inheritance must be supported by evidence. Medical accompaniment records, nursing fee receipts, proof of cohabitation, testimonies from the community and neighbors, and receipts for funeral expenses are all important references for the court to determine the share. Oral claims are usually difficult to be effective.

Q5: If I'm not satisfied with the judgment on the validity of the will, can I still appeal it?

The parties may choose the remedies according to the procedural stage. If the first-instance judgment has not yet taken effect, they may file an appeal to the court of the next higher level within 15 days from the date of receipt of the judgment; if the judgment has taken effect and meets the statutory circumstances of the trial supervision procedure set forth in the Civil Procedure Law of the People's Republic of China, they may apply for a retrial, for example, if there is new evidence sufficient to overturn the original judgment, or if the basic facts determined in the original judgment lack evidence to prove them. There are time limits for the review of a retrial, and the collection and organization of new evidence are key. It is recommended that lawyers evaluate whether the case meets the statutory grounds for a retrial before initiating the process. Whether it is an appeal or a retrial, it is necessary to simultaneously assess the necessity of property preservation to avoid the property being further disposed of during the dispute, resulting in difficulties in enforcing the judgment even if the litigant wins the case.

If you are facing similar problems, it is recommended that you consult a professional lawyer as soon as possible with the evidence materials, so as to avoid missing the statutory time limit. →Legal services for inheritance·Attorney Yuan Hang·Beijing Henglue Law Firm